Record number of Gilman Scholars at Kennesaw State travel the globe – News
Record number of Gilman Scholars at Kennesaw State travel the globe
KENNESAW, Ga. |
Jul 24, 2026
Sidney Agee
Whencomputer sciencemajor Aaliyah Uchendu learned that Kennesaw State University offered an education
abroad program in Japan, she was hesitant to apply due to costs, but her mother encouraged
her not to count herself out
That conversation prompted Uchendu, an Honors student in the Keeping Sights Upward Journey Honors College, to apply for multiple scholarships and by the time she boarded a plane to Tokyo
earlier this summer, scholarships had covered nearly all her costs
Uchendu is one of a record number of KSU students awarded the Benjamin A. Gilman International
Scholarship this year. The Gilman Scholarship is a prestigious award funded by the
US State Department that provides recipients up to $5,000 to support study or internships
abroad; only about 20%-25% of applicants are selected for the award. During the March
2026 application cycle, 56 KSU students applied, and 10 received the award. Across
the full academic year, 73 KSU students applied, and 11 students earned scholarships
to study abroad.
The milestone reflects a growing partnership between KSU’s Office of Prestigious Undergraduate Awards (OPUA) and Education Abroad , which expanded workshops and one-on-one mentoring to help students prepare competitive
applications
“We made some really important steps forward,” said Jamie Elliott, associate dean for academic affairs in the KSU Journey Honors College. “The first was to be very intentional about working with our partners in Education Abroad to provide workshops, both informational workshops and mentoring workshops for students.”
Those efforts helped students see the Gilman Scholarship as an attainable opportunity
while strengthening their applications, Elliott said
For Uchendu, the experience became much more than a trip abroad
Visiting a Japanese university with her education abroad cohort gave her a behind-the-scenes
look at emerging technologies. She was especially fascinated by a project that used
nerve sensors to transmit hand movements from one person to another and by researchers
working on early self-driving car technology
“I got to see the behind-the-scenes look at the development process behind technologies people often take for granted,” she said. “It’s nice to have that perspective because we just see the final stages and we don’t really know how they produced it.”
Honors political science student Sidney Agee, another Gilman Scholar, also had a transformative experience
studying abroad in Peru
Montaid her experience in Peru shifted
her perspective. Visiting communities in the Andes and seeing the limited access to
ressible
“I thought I wanted to go to law school and work in Congress,” she said. “But it wasn’t
until I studied abroad that I realized a passion I didn’t even know I had. I realized
that if I’m going to do something political, then I want to make education accessible.”
During her two weeks in Peru, Agee also visited Machu Picchu, one of the New Seven
Wonders of the World; the Sacred Valley of the Incas, and Universidad Nacional Mayor
de San Marcos in Lima, recognized as the oldest university in the Americas
Now a Global Ambassador with the Office of Global Education, Agee is preparing a Fulbright Scholarship application
with support from OPUA
Honors nursing student Montaholarship
allowed him to experience healthcare beyond the United States
“I wanted to study abroad because I knew it would expose me to a completely different
healthcare system and culture,” Walker said. “The Gilman Scholarship took away a major
financial barrier and allowed me to focus on learning instead of worrying about how
I was going to afford this experience.”
Elliott said the record-setting year demonstrates both the caliber of KSU students
and the university’s growing national reputation
“I think it shows that our students are going to be really competitive at the next
step of their career, because they’ve had this unique study abroad experience, but
also the experience of trying something new, putting themselves out there and achieving
a goal,” Elliott said
Students interested in applying for the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship,
which has application deadlines annually in October and March, should contact the
Office of Prestigious Undergraduate Awards at opua@kennesaw.edu. Students who are interested in study abroad opportunities should visit the Education Abroad website and attend the Education Abroad Fair held on campus every fall and spring
Photos provided
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A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees to its more than 51,000 students. Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties, and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 8 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.
